Shoemaker&#39;s tool.



M. L. DODGE.

SHOEMAKERS TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. so. me.

Patented June 5, 1917.

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MILTON L. DODGE, OF NEWBURYPORT, MASSACHUSETTS.

SHOEMAKERS TOOL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

resented .rune 5, 1917.

Application led September 30 1916. vSerial No. 123,170.

To all t0/wm t may concern:

Be it known that I, MILTON L. DODGE, a citizen of the United States, residing' at Newburyport, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Shoemakers7 rfools, of which the following is a specification.

The object of the present invention is to provide a tool for putting toe boxes in shoes. In my copending application, Serial No. 110,855, filed July 211, 1916, I have disclosed a method of making turn shoes, according to which a turn7 shoe is lasted without a toe box, then turned, after which the toe box is inserted. The toe portion of the upper lining is not fastened in the course of lasting the shoe, but is turned back until after the toe box is inserted. 'Ihen the lining is tucked into the toe box, with the result that the latter lies between the upper and the lining. The toe box is molded to the desired form before it is inserted in the shoe, and its surface is sticky when it is inserted, so that it will adhere to the upper and be held in place by adhesion and so that the toe portion of the lining will be held to it by adhesion.

My present invention provides a tool adapted to insert a sticky molded toe box according to the aforesaid method, and it embodies a construction that facilitates the box-inserting operation.

Of the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one form in which the present invention may be embodied:

Figure 1 represents a side elevation in which solid lines represent the device in its contracted condition and broken lines represent the principal elements in extended condition.

Fig. 2 represents an elevation of the heel portion of the device as viewed from the opposite side, in extended condition.

Fig. 3 represents a vertical cross section through the structure intersected by line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

F ig. l represents a top plan view of the adjustable detachable holder for the toe box.

:7 represents an inverted plan view of such holder, solid lines representing its condition when adjusted for a relatively narrow box, and broken lines representing its condition when adjusted for a relatively wide box.

Fig. G represents a longitudinal vertical section through said holder, and includes in side elevation the coupling portion of the carrier therefor.

Fig. 7 represents a perspective view of the molded toe box with which the device is adapted to practice the method hereinbefore explained.

r1`he same reference characters indicate the same parts wherever they occur.

The toe box indicated at 10 is molded to the desired form before it is inserted in a shoe. It is provided with a flange 11 that is adapted to rest on the sole. In carrying out the method explained the entire surface of the toe box would be in a sticky condition when the box ,is inserted in the shoe, and such Vcondition could be brought about by making the box of sheet Celluloid and applying a solvent to it, or by making the box of some other material and coating its surface with a solution of celluloid or other sticky substance.

My device for inserting the toe box includes a holder for the latter, said holder preferably comprising two adjustable halfsections 12, 12, and means for adjusting them according to the width of the shoe. In the present instance the sections 12, 12 are made of sheet metal and are fixed to bars 13, 13 respectively. rllhe forward ends of said bars have hinge connection, the hingepin thereof being indicated at 14. This pin is anchored in a socket member 15. Bars 13, 13 are adapted to swing toward and from each other about pin 11 to vary the effective width of the holder, and for the purpose of adjusting them, links 16, 16 are connected to them by pivot studs 17, 17. The innervends of the links are arranged upon a common pivot stud 18, and the latter is formed upon a collar 19. The shank of the adjusting screw 20 extends loosely through a hole in collar 19 and has screw-threaded connection with a block 21. This block is provided with a shank 22, and the latter serves to anchor the block to the socket member 15 as shown by Fig. 6. The adjusting screw is provided with a head 23 that bears against the rear end of collar 19. A helical compression spring 211 is coiled about the shank of the adjusting screw, and its ends bear against collar 19 and block 21 respectively. The spring keeps the collar against the head 23 and thus acts to draw the sections of the holder toward each other as the screw is screwed to the rear. When collar 19 is moved forward by means of the adjusting screw the sections of the holder are forced apart.

The member 15 is called a socket member because it provides a socket 25 for end portion 26 of a carrier`27. rIhe socket is completed by top and bottom plates 28. These plates are fastened to the member l5 in the present instance by shank 22 and rivet 29. The plates have sufficient resilience to be forced apart and to spring toward each otherl as hereinafter explained and are, in effect, spring latches. Y Their ends are bent toward each other to provide flanges 30, 30, and the carrier 27 is provided with grooves 31 ar ranged to receive said flanges. The forward end of the carrier is beveled as indicated at 32, so that it may enter between flanges 30, 30 and force the latter apart as the portion 2G is moved longitudinally into the socket 25. When grooves 31 move into registration with flanges 30 the latter spring into them, and the holder is thus secured to the carrier. The resilience of the plates 28 enables the holder to tilt slightly, and in order to detach the holder from its carrier one element maybe tilted relatively to the other until one of the flanges 30 is retracted from its groove 31. If at the same time retractory stress is applied to the carrier the latter Will free itself from the other flange and complete the detaching operation.

The body of the device comprises three principal members, of which carrier 27 is The others are indicated at 33 and 34 respectively. f As shown by F ig. 3, these three principal members have sliding T- shape tongue-and-groove connecting portions, the tongue portions 35 and 36 being formed upon the members 27 and 33 respectively, and the grooves therefor being formed in the intermediate member 34. The rear end ofmember 34 is provided with a head 37 that ris arranged to abut against the rearA internal surface of the counter portion of the shoe, and its counter-engaging surface is curved to conform approximately to the curvature of the counter portion. When the device is ready for use, members 33 and 34 are locked relatively to each other, but

carrier 27 is free to slide longitudinally to advance and retract'the toe-box holder relatively to the head 37. For the purpose of locking members 33 and 34 relatively to eachr other, I have provided means for locle ing them inV various relative positions, to enable the device to be adjusted as to length for shoes of different lengths. I' The locking means referred to is shown by Figs. 2 and 3. A locking piece 38 is affixed to one side of member 34. The upper edge of member 3S is provided with locking teeth 39, a series o-f such teeth being preferable to a single tooth, to afford greater locking strength.V

The complemental-locking'member 40 is provided With a relatively large number of locking teeth 41 which arealso arranged in a series. Member 40 is anchored to member 33 by a pivot stud 42. Member 40 is Y held in locking position by a flat leaf spring 43 fastened upon the upper surface of member 33 in the vicinity of pivot stud 42. In the present instance spring 43 is clamped by a block 44 that is fastened tomember 3 3 by screws 45, said screws extending through the spring. The free end of the spring is provided With ears 46 that are turned down to embrace member 33 and locking member 40 respectively, as shown by Fig. 3. These ears serve to keep locking member 40 against the vertical surface of member 3,3, and the locking member is thus held against lateral displacement relatively to locking member 38.

In order to vary the effective length ofV the device, member 34 may be adjusted longitudinally in relation to member 33 provided the free end of locking member 40 is raised far enough to move teeth 4l out of the range' of teeth 39. Vhile the members 33 and '34 are locked relatively to each other they are, to all intents and purposes, a unit, and when the device is operated as hereinafter described, they remain a unit While they move relatively to member 27 or While member127 moves relatively to them.

A lining guard 47 of sheet metal is-aiiixed to the forward end of member 33. This guard is adapted to go into the' ball portion of a shoe to prevent the toe box from touching the lining during the operation of inserting the box. It may be repeated at this time that the toe portion of the lining is turned back in the shoe until after the toe box has beenk inserted in the desired position. The guard 47, therefore, goes between the toe box and the turned-back portion of the lining, and holds the latter avvay from the box` or vice versa, so that the lining Will not become disarranged While the toe box is being inserted. Guard 47 is curved in cross section to conform substantially to the curvature of the shoe, and there is enough space between it and the toebox holder to provide clearance for the toe-box.

The device is provided with operating mechanism adapted to move the carrier 27 longitudinally With relation to members 33 and 34. In the present instance the operating means comprise a two-armed lever. and a connecting link.` Arm 48 of said lever is the.

the direction indicated by arrow a. The toe box holder is thus moved forwardly and the guard 47 is moved to the rear, the action of arm 49 and link 50 being that of a toggle. 1f the head 37 is not against the counter portion of the shoe when the operating movement begins, it will be moved to the rear in the course of operation until it abuts against the counter portion, and continued movement of the operating handle will result in moving the toe box holder relatively to the shoe.

In the present-instance arm 49 and link 50 have proportions adapted to place pivot members 5l, 52 and 53 on dead center when the device is extended to the full extent of the range of operating movement. Consequently if the members 33 and 34 be locked in the correct relation according to the length of the shoe, the toe box will be abutted against the toe end of the shoe when the device is fully extended, and the extended condition will be maintained without prolonged efort on the part of the user as long as pivot members 5l, 52 and 53 remain on dead center.7 When the device has remained in extended position in the shoe for a suliicient length of time, member 48 may be moved back to its initial position to shorten the device, and the latter may then be removed from the shoe. The turnedback toe portion of the lining may then be tucked into the toe box. A stop pin 54 projects from member 33 and is arranged to arrest the operating movement of the toggle members when the latter are on dead center.

When a shoe is turned it is initially distorted, and the upper has to be stretched and smoothed to a considerable degree to restore the shape of the last. It would not be economical, however, to place the last back in the shoe after the latter has been turned but before the toe box has been inserted, merely for the sake of stretching and smoothing the upper, for the last would have to be removed while the toe box is being inserted. It is desirable, however, to stretch and smooth the toe portion of the shoe prior to inserting the toe box to remove the wrinkles from the upper, so that when the toe box is inserted the upper will be in a suitable condition to receive it.

For the reason stated in the preceding paragraph my device may be used without the lining guard 47 to prepare the toe p0rtion of the shoe for the reception of the toe box, and in such case it would be desirable to have two devices, one without the guard 47 and one with such guard, and to use first one and then the other. The device without the guard would be placed in one shoe to stretch it and to smooth the toe portion of the upper, and would be left in the shoe while the other device with the guard were being used to insert a toe box in another shoe. in due course the device without the guard would be removed from the shoe and then the device with the guard would be used to insert the toe box. The device used rst would be, to all intents and purposes, a tree, but it would dier from most trees in that the toe forni would be adjustable as to width and would have the sliding connections between its toe-form and heel-end portion to keep the device in a substantially straight condition.

l claim:

l. A device of the character described, comprising a toe-box holder adapted to go into the toe of a shoe, a carrier for said holder, a guard adapted to go into the toe of the shoe between the lining thereof and a toe-box on said holder, a carrier for said guard, an element carried by the latter said carrier and arranged to abut against the heel-end of the shoe, and means arranged to act on said two carriers to cause relativemovement of them, whereby said device is adapted to act against the heel-end of the shoe to move a box, on said holder, against the toe-end of the shoe.

2. A device of the character described, comprising a toe-box holder adapted to go into the toe of a shoe, a carrier for said holder, a guard adapted to go into the toe of the shoe between the lining thereof and a toe-box on said holder, a carrier for said guard, a connecting member arranged to abut against the heel-end of the shoe, said connecting member and each of said carriers having cooperative sliding tongue-andgroove portions, means arranged to cause relative movement of said carriers to extend said device, and means arranged to transmit such relative movement from said guard carrier to said connecting member.

3. A device of the character described, comprising a toe-box holder adapted to go into the'toe of a shoe, a carrier for said holder, a guard adapted to go into the toe of the shoe between the lining thereof and a toe-box on said holder, a carrier for said guard, a counter-engaging member, said guard carrier and said member having cooperative sliding connecting portions, means arranged to lock said member and said guard carrier in various relative positions to vary the effective length of such couple, and means arranged to act on said couple and on the first said carrier to cause relative movement of them to thrust said member against the heel-end, and to move the box on said holder against the toe-end, of the shoe.

4. A device of the character described, comprising a toe-box holder adapted to go into the toe of a shoe, a guard adapted to go into the toe of the shoe between the lining thereof and a toe-box on said holder, a carrier for said guard, a member arranged them extended in various relations, one of said toothed members being movable to and from cooperative engagement' With the other to permit adjustment of said carrier and said member relatively to each other, a carrier for said holder, said member and the latter said carrier having cooperative sliding tongue-and-groove portions arranged to.

keep them connected, and means arranged t0 cause relative 'movement of said tvvo carriers to extend said device.

5. A device of the character described, comprising two relatively movable elements having cooperative connecting sliding portions arranged to slide one on the other, one

of said elements having means adapted to go into and hold a toe-box, a guard arranged on the other oneA of said elements in position to overhang said means when the device is contracted, 'the latter one of said elements having a portion arranged to abut against the heel-end of a shoe, and means arranged to cause relative. movement of said elements to thrust a toe-box from under said guard and against the toe end of the shoe.

6. A device of the character described, comprising a toe-box holder, a carrier therefor,r said holder' and carrier having' cop-v erative coupling elements including a spring latch, and means movably connected to said carrier and arranged to act against the heelend of a shoe to thrust a toe-box, on said holder, against the toe-end of the shoe.

In testimony Whereoil I have aiixed my signature.

MILTON L. DODGE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained forvve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

v Washington, D. C. y

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